Indiana James and the Temple of Gloom
by Larabee's Lady
Summary: Despite title, includes all the guys. No slash, not a Mary Sue. Just a straight-up adventure story with a tiny bit of romance, all inspired by "Big Time Movie." While in South America on tour, the guys get lost in the jungle and mixed up with international criminals. And meet girls. You know: the usual.
1. Chapter 1: The Arrival

**NOTES: Don't let the title fool you: it _will_ feature all the boys. Inspired by "Big Time Movie." My first story for this show, but I wanted to try something different. You don't have to post R&Rs to get more. There'll definitely be more. Now...if there's a South American rusher (especially from, around, or been to Peru) out there who knows English and Spanish and has some time available to help with questions, I'd love to hear from you! Otherwise, all inaccuracies, typos, and bad Spanish are mine (I studied French) and that's all on me.**

* * *

**Chapter 1: The Arrival**

The members of Big Time Rush cheered as they eagerly piled into their hotel suite.

"We made it!" Logan Mitchell shouted. He tossed his backpack onto one of the nearest beds, grinning. "Peru at last! What do you think, Carlos?"

The room was similar to their suite in London. It had a very large bedroom with four full-sized beds and a small desk. The bedroom also had a small balcony with a pair of French doors. Carlos Garcia slipped his helmet on and headed for the balcony window. He threw the doors open, leaned over the railing and and bellowed to the bustling street below. "Hello, Lima!" He was answered by high-pitched screams of delight from below. He turned back to Logan with a grin. "I love our Rushers."

Rolling his suitcase behind him, James Diamond headed straight to one of the two bathrooms and shut the door.

Kendall Knight wandered in the room next to the bedroom. It was bigger, and had a flat screen TV, a small sofa, two thickly-padded armchairs, and a coffee table with a remote control and a pair of game controllers on it. On one side of the room was small kitchen with a microwave, a small fridge, and a coffeemaker. "Carlos," he called out. "Aren't you going to call your dad and let him know we made it? He's only been asking you about Peru since the first tour."

"It's okay. I sent him a text when we landed."

Kendall re-entered the bedroom as Kelly Wainwright appeared in the open doorway of the suite, clipboard in hand. "Good," she said. "You're here. Now—wait—where's James?"

"Bathroom" replied Logan. He knocked on the bathroom door. "Kelly's here."

The door opened and James emerged, dressed in dark green cargo pants and a brown leather bomber jacket with a beige button-down shirt with patch pockets. The whole outfit was completed by a beat-up looking, soft fedora hat.

Logan pointed at him, puzzled. "When did you get that? Was that actually in your luggage?"

Kendall smirked. "Oh…my…god. Who are _you _supposed to be? _Indiana James_?"

James nodded, his voice deep and serious. "You bet I am. Logan said there's tons of jungle and rain forest in Peru and the ladies love an adventurous guy."

Kendall eyed him up and down with a skeptical look. "And that's you? I never thought I'd say this, but I think I prefer Bandanna Man."

"Bandannas are cool!" James exclaimed, his voice sharp. He continued in his best dramatic-sounding voice. "Ah, my friend, yes, superheros have their place, but here…" He put his hand on Kendall's shoulder. "In South America…the ladies need someone who's—"

"—Nuts?" Logan finished for him.

Carlos frowned, pointing at James's hat. "Doesn't that ruin your hair?"

James did his 'The Face' move, saying "It's all part of the look." Kendall rolled his eyes.

Kelly shook her head. She should have been used to this kind of thing from the guys by now, but they still managed to surprise her. She sighed and continued, choosing once again to ignore these latest antics. "Okay, whatever. Look, guys, sound check has been delayed. There's been some flooding that managed to damage the electrical system, and now they need to do some major repairs first."

The guys of Big Time Rush frowned at this news. Logan said what they were all thinking: "What does this mean for the concert? We don't want to let our fans down."

"If it's really bad, we may have to reschedule and allow fans to trade in their tickets for a later date." She could see the disappointment and worry in their faces. "It'll be okay. I promise: we won't leave South America without doing a concert here. We'll know more tomorrow. For now, look at the bright side. You have an extra day to actually see Lima. But keep your phones handy in case anything changes. And don't roam too far."

Carlos looked at his bandmates. "I bet Gustavo is freakin' out."

"GUSTAVO IS NOT FREAKING OUT!" Gustavo Rocque, their manager/record producer/songwriter, suddenly appeared in the doorway behind Kelly. For a guy who insisted he wasn't freaking out, Big Time Rush couldn't help but notice sweat was pouring down his face, his hands were clenching and unclenching, and at least one eye was twitching behind his ever-present sunglasses. "Everything's going to be FINE. You DOGS just need to stay out of trouble for the next 24 hours, got it? We don't want a repeat of what happened in London."

James couldn't resist. "But we saved the w-"

"DON'T say it. Just…don't. Because if you say it, I have to accept that it actually happened. And as far as I'm concerned, it wasn't real." Gustavo laughed nervously. "It was all just Carlos's dream."

"But—"

"CARLOS'S DREAM!" And without another word, Gustavo turned and disappeared down the hall.

Kelly watched him go before giving BTR one last I-really-mean-it look. "Guys, just…you know…_try _to stay out of trouble, okay?"

Kendall smiled. "No worries, Kelly. Everything will be fine. This won't be like Lon-"

"CARLOS'S DREAM," she shouted, and raced after Gustavo.

Logan turned to his band mates and shrugged. "Soooo..what do we do now?"

James was standing in front of a mirror adjusting his hat for the just-right angle. "We never have time when we're on tour. Not for doing anything that's not concert-related." Finally satisfied, he turned to his bandmates. "Let's go experience Peruvian culture by meeting Peruvian girls."

"I need to get some souvenirs," said Carlos. "For my dad. And our friends at the Palm Woods. Like the Jennifers."

James groaned. "Shopping? Really? That's so boring!"

"Why can't we do what _I_ want to do for a change? We always—!"

"Because this city is probably crawling with hot girls and you want to waste time—!"

"And you think you're going to charm them in _that_—!"

"Well, it's a lot less BORING than—Logan, back me up here—!"

"Don't drag _me_ into this, Mr. Delusional—!"

Moments later, Logan, James, and Carlos were all talking at once.

"Guys! Guys" shouted Kendall, frustrated. "Look, Carlos has a point. Let's help him get his souvenirs - quickly - and get that out of the way. Besides, I really should get something for Mom and Katie. Then we can use the rest of the time for other things. Like you said, it's more time than we usually have, and James, that's more time than you really need to meet a girl."

"Meeting? Or _choosing_?"

"Not the point!"

Logan looked at James. "And while we're buying souvenirs, maybe we can find James a new wardrobe."

"What?! Why? I look good. And this is classic—!"

"Classic like in 'old and musty'. Where did you even—!"

Kendall sighed as he shepherded his friends, still arguing, towards the door. The boys of Big Time Rush had just reached the hotel elevator on their floor when Logan stopped them.

"Guys, our fans will be waiting for us outside."

James grinned at that. "So? We love our fans."

Carlos agreed. "And they're always nice to us."

"True," said Logan. "But we don't have time now. If we stop for autographs and pictures, Carlos won't be able to get his souvenirs."

They hated to admit it, but Logan was right. Ordinarily, stopping to greet fans was never a bother, but time was tight and they were on a mission - more or less.

"The stairs!" Kendall cried.

Carlos opened the door to the stairwell and stopped abruptly, the rest of his bandmates crashing into him. "This won't work. Listen!"

The guys could hear their fans screaming and giggling below.

James stepped back and raised one finger. "Don't worry, men! As Indiana James, _I'll _lead us out of here!" He ran down the corridor without a backward glance. Despite his confidence, his bandmates knew he had no more idea where he was going than they did, but what did they have to lose by following him? Everyone was running on instinct now anyway. Suddenly James stopped. At the end of the hall next to an ice machine was a small door about 2 feet square. "Wait! This must be the laundry chute." A slow smile spread across his face. "We take this and land softly in a pile of sheets and towels below. Fun…_and _safe." He pulled the small door open and climbed in feet first. He leaned on the edge for a moment, grinned over his shoulder at his friends, and then dropped out of sight.

Carlos grinned and slapped the top of his helmet before getting in after James. "That looks like fun! Geronimo!"

"Logan?" Kendall raised his eyebrows questioningly.

Logan groaned in dismay and quickly followed Carlos into the laundry chute, with Kendall right behind him.


	2. Chapter 2: The 3-Hour Tour (not exactly)

Indiana James and the Temple of Gloom

NOTES: Pardon my Spanish (I studied French). All errors, typos, omissions and general mayhem are mine only.

* * *

**Chapter 2**

Halfway down the chute, Kendall nose was assaulted by a horrible odor that increased until he landed in something soft, smelly, and somewhat wet. "JAMES! This isn't a laundry chute! It's a _garbage chute_! We landed in a _dumpster_!"

James had already climbed out and was picking a limp celery stalk out of his shirt pocket. "Hey, I got us downstairs without taking the elevator or the stairs, didn't I?" He readjusted his hat which by some miracle had managed to stay on his head. "Kendall, we're on an adventure."

"We're on a shopping trip."

The boys were in a dumpster in the hotel's wide open loading dock, just outside the large and busy kitchen. As they climbed out, picking garbage out of their clothes, they glanced around. There appeared to be no one in the loading area, even though the bay doors for trucks were open.

James' hazel eyes scanned the length of the alley in each direction. "Okay, now what?"

"Well, whichever way we go," said Logan, "let's not stay here much longer, okay? I swear something in that dumpster was moving. And it isn't Carlos." Carlos responded with a playful poke in Logan's shoulder.

"_No puedo ser_ (it can't be)! Big Time Rush!"

The guys jumped, startled, as the garbage in the dumpster began to move.

Logan pointed. "See? I told you!"

A second later, a young man popped up, holding an apple in one hand and a half-rotted head of lettuce in the other.

Kendall was the first to recover. "You know us?"

"Your posters are all over town. It's all the girls around here talk about." The young man, who looked to be Kendall's age or just a bit younger, tossed the lettuce aside and jumped out of the dumpster. He stuck out his hand in greeting. "_Me llamo _Teo. Teodoro Rodriguez. Welcome to Lima!" He was about Logan's height and lean with dark wavy hair and brown eyes, not unlike Carlos. He wore faded jeans and a brown t-shirt with a soccer team logo on it. Logan felt a little queasy as he watched Teo take a huge bite out of the half-browned apple.

"_Mucho gusto. Me llamo _Carlos Garcia_, _and this is Logan Mitchell, Kendall Knight, and James Diamond."

"What are you guys doing here?"

"We're doing a concert," James replied.

Teo rolled his eyes. "No, I mean _here_. In a dumpster."

"We're supposed to be shopping for souvenirs," said Kendall. At Teo's look, he added hastily "not here-here. We're just trying to put off meeting up with our fans till later."

Teo grinned. "What you need is a guide. I can do that. Fifty bucks each is good, no?"

Carlos flashed an apologetic smile. "We don't have fifty bucks each. They give us a per diem. It's like an allowance, and there's rules about what we can spend it on."

Kendall smiled at Teo and crossed his arms in front of his chest. "You're a guide?"

Teo drew himself up, grinning with pride. "The best. What would you like to see?"

"We have a driver," said Logan, glancing nervously down the alley. "Somewhere…"

"Yeah," Kendall agreed. "We could do that…"

"Oh, no," Logan muttered.

"—But we wouldn't be able to go where we want. We'll only be able to go where they let us and when."

"And the paparazzi will follow us, too," added James. "We might as well stay in our room. And we're on an adventure."

Ignoring him, Kendall turned to Teo. "How about we buy you lunch instead?"

Teo grinned wider and threw the apple core back into the dumpster. "Follow me, _caballeros_."

The bandmates followed their new guide into the alley. It was long and narrow, flanked by tall buildings that made it look like a dark, gloomy canyon, even with the sun overhead. Teo turned right and walked down the alley toward the street.

"Your English is very good," Logan remarked. "Just out of curiosity, not to be nosy or anything but - why were _you _in the dumpster?"

Their new guide shrugged. "Thank you, I watch a lot of American TV. The main street is just ahead."

The alley opened onto a Lima street that was bustling with traffic. To be more accurate, it was packed with traffic that was barely moving. The sidewalks were just as busy. Teo turned to his left away from the direction of the hotel and the guys followed.

"There's a huge marketplace in the plaza just a few blocks from your hotel. We can walk from here easy."

"_Gracias_," said Carlos.

"That's great," Kendall agreed. "But we're kind of trying to avoid big crowds right now. Fans, paparazzi, that sort of thing. Is there anyplace else we could go?"

Teo frowned thoughtfully, then brightened. "There's a small marketplace I know of that I can take you to. It's further out, toward the airport."

Logan shook his head. "We flew in through the international airport but there was no market around there."

"Not that airport. This is a small one for small planes. But this market, I promise it's worth it. You can get plenty of authentic Peruvian things there for a good price. Come, I can drive you."

Logan cocked an eyebrow, considering where they'd first encountered him. "You have a car?"

Teo nodded. "The best."

When the boys reached Teo's car, they stood a moment and stared, trying to control their reactions. It was a Jeep and in the U.S., it might be called "antique" or "vintage." Here in Lima, Peru, it was just old, with a few rust spots, a roll bar across the back and no top or side doors. Kendall began to wonder if he'd been too hasty accepting Teo's offer and Logan was wondering the same thing.

As they climbed into the Jeep, Logan searched in vain for a seat belt that wasn't there and mentally began a list of the many L.A. safety violations he could see. For once, he envied Carlos for having a helmet. Teo threw the Jeep noisily into gear and lurched into traffic. Kendall sat in the front passenger seat, fingers digging into his seat, while James, Carlos, and Logan were crammed in the back, clinging for their lives to the roll bar as the Jeep careened through side streets well outside the city center.

"So…" said Kendall as the wind whistled past them. "This place we're going. How do you know about it?"

"I pass it when I come out to fly."

"You're a pilot?" Logan looked doubtful again. He was sitting directly behind Teo and at that point wasn't sure he was a driver, much less a pilot.

"Si. Yes. I come out here at least once a month, . There's some great views from the air. If you get some time, you really should take a tour from the sky. It's only an hour to the rain forest. You could do it less than a day. Less than half a day if you really want to."

At last the Jeep Logan had secretly dubbed "Death Ride" came to a stop at the top of a narrow street, at the end of a busy marketplace. On either side of the street were various stalls piled with all kinds of goods in all the colors of the rainbow. Carlos, Logan, James, and Kendall could smell all kinds of food: cooking meat, cinnamon, and sweet tropical fruits.

"_Mirad_ (look)_,_" said Teo. "You should be able to find stuff here."

Carlos had already wandered to a stall displaying musical instruments. He picked up a ukelele and began to strum.

James peered over his shoulder. "Don't you already have one of those?" He picked up clam-shaped item with a hole at one end and five holes on one side. The other side had a colorful pattern painted on it. "Hey, what's this thing?"

"That's an ocarina," said Carlos. "My grandpapi used to play one."

"Can you play it?"

Carlos shook his head. "I never really paid much attention. It's kind of like a round flute."

James blew into it, producing a sharp whistle. He smiled at the pretty young girl working the stall and held out a palmful of coins, his eyes questioning. The girl gave him a shy smile before carefully selecting a few coins from his hand. "_Gracias_," she said.

"_Me llamo James…_"

"Stop it," Kendall warned in his ear. "We don't have time for that."

As if on cue, phones began to buzz and vibrate. Phones appeared out of various pockets.

"Well, you're wrong." James grinned and read the text message aloud. "Electricals worse than thought. Lima postponed. You have 2 more days. Enjoy. Call if problems. I MEAN IT. Kelly."

"It's like she doesn't trust us," said Kendall.

Logan nodded. "I know, right? Carlos, where's your phone?"

"I broke it right before we left, so I left it at home. "Don't tell Kelly, okay?" Carlos's eyes brightened. "This means I have more time to shop for something really good!"

"Not more shopping!" James groaned.

"_You _already got something—" And seconds later, all four were arguing again.

Teo was looking into the distance, thinking. "How about that tour? We can back in time for dinner. Maybe sooner."

The guys immediately stopped talking and turned their attention to him. "What?"

"A plane tour over the jungle." Teo reminded them. He gestured out to his left. "The airport is just over there."

"Sounds like an adventure," said James, striking his best 'fearless explorer' pose.

Logan eyed Teo skeptically. "Don't tell me you have a plane, too."

"It's my father's. And mine. We own it together."

"And your dad won't mind…"

"Like I told you, I come out here all the time."

"But—my souvenirs!" Carlos knew his friends well enough to know that souvenir shopping was now the furthest thing from their minds - and staying there. Still, a tour of the jungle by plane sounded too good to resist and his resolve was weakening. "How much will this cost?"

"Don't worry about it," said Teo. "Big Time Rush is my friends, yes? The girls will love it when I tell them _that_."

James nodded in understanding. "We have that effect…"

Kendall rolled his eyes upward. "Stop."

The small airfield was dotted with small planes. It reminded the guys of municipal airports back in LA, the kind used by weekend pilots. Most of the planes here appeared to be single-engine Pipers, Cessnas, and Beechcrafts, some clearly older than others. Near the entrance to the airfield were two hangars. The nearest one had a sign labeled "Oficina" (office). Teo parked the Jeep near the first hangar and turned to his new friends.

"You wait here. I'll take care of everything." He hesitated. "Um, I may need some money for gas and use of the airfield. Do you guys have any?"

Kendall thought a moment. "My mom gave me her credit card before we left."

"She said that was for emergencies!" Logan argued. "I don't think she meant—"

"Big Time Rush is on the adventure of our lives," James declared.

"Logan, James has a point. Sort of. This _is_ an emergency. We have time off - for once, which we never, ever get - and can tour a place we may never see again."

"And the rain forest _is _disappearing," added Carlos. "I agree with Kendall and James. She'd want us to do this."

Teo snatched the card from Kendall's hand and disappeared into the hangar office.

"Guys," Logan said in a low voice. "Come on. Honestly. Should we really be doing this? We just met him."

James leaned forward. "_This…_he declared, pausing for dramatic effect. "…is an adventure." He sat back and smiled, nodding. "Indiana James approves."

Logan frowned, his anxiety and exasperation rising. "Would you cut that out? You're not Indiana James! At best, you're Minnesota James. Maybe California James. What am I saying…"

"I agree with James," said Carlos. "Teo seems like a nice guy and a jungle tour sounds fun. Besides, we got 3 days in Peru and I wanna see some monkeys and jaguars."

Kendall nodded. "And Teo says he does this all the time."

Logan's shoulders slumped and he sighed. "I can see I'm outvoted. Once again." He shook his head, muttering under his breath, "I gotta get new friends."

Teo came back a moment later, smiling, and handed the card back to Kendall. "_Gracias, mi ago_. Let's go, boys!"

A little while later Big Time Rush, along with Teo, their pilot and guide, were gaining altitude over Lima and heading east. The small plane comfortably seated 6, including the pilot. Teo sat at the controls, pointing out interesting sites below. At one point, the boys could see their hotel through the patches of clouds. City and coastal desert gave way to mountains with winding trails, and mountains were gradually replaced by lush, green rain forest. All the while, the four friends took in the amazing Peruvian scenery. Even Logan had to admit this was an adventure worth having, and Carlos had long forgotten about souvenirs and shopping.

"I'm going to fly lower so we can see better."

The clouds began to thicken as the plane dropped lower. Logan frowned and looked at the skies ahead. "It looks like a storm's coming."

Teo shrugged. "It's a rain forest. So it's raining."

James poked Logan. "Yeah. Stop raining on our adventure. Indiana James—"

"DON'T—say it. Really. Just…don't."

The plane began to shake from the turbulence as the force of the storm increased. Between the plane's engine and the wind and rain just outside, it was getting harder to hear the sound of their own voices. The skies grew even darker until it looked like nightfall outside the aircraft.

"Can this plane handle it?" James called out.

"I don't know," Teo called back.

"What?" James wasn't sure he'd heard that right. "Why—why don't you know?"

"I don't want to ruin your trip, but I probably ought to tell you," said Teo, glancing back at his passengers. "I don't know…because this isn't my plane!"

Carlos's brown eyes widened. "It's your dad's, right?"

"I don't know whose it is."

Logan was confused. "But didn't you show them ID when you paid for the plane?"

"I just picked the one furthest away, told them it was my uncle's, and had them gas it up. I never said I was going to fly it."

"Who's this 'we'?" Kendall exclaimed. He kept his eyes on the ground below, hoping it wouldn't get any closer than it already was.

Kendall gave him a sharp look. "Wait! What?! You mean we're riding in a stolen plane?!"

"Borrowed," Teo corrected him.

The guys looked at each other in a mix of shock, horror, and fear, unable to say anything for a long moment.

"Yeah, that's still bad!" shouted Kendall at last.

The plane dipped and bounced and Teo gripped the controls, his mouth set in a thin line, eyes sweeping between the instrument panel and the darkness ahead. To his passengers, he seemed to be just flicking switches and tapping dials, as if hoping that would be enough to get things to improve.

"That's not the bad part," Teo shot back. Rain was pelting the windshield in sheets now and the plane was rocking. Camping gear that had been stored in the back began shifting into the forward area of the plane's cabin. Kendall and James tried not to notice that Teo's knuckles were now white as he clutched the controls.

"Please, no…" Logan groaned, his face white with dread.

"I'm not really a pilot yet. Not officially. I've flown but I don't have enough hours for a license."

"You're not a pilot?!" James exclaimed, his voice ending with a high-pitched squeak. His eyes were wide with fear. "KENDALL!"

"Don't look at me! I'm not a pilot either!" Kendall was just as terrified as James but trying hard to hide it.

_"What do we do?!"_

Teo's face was grim, his mouth set. "This is the bad part. We hold on tight—because it looks like we're going down, _mi amigos_!"

The sound of the storm was drowned out by the screams of five young men as their plane dropped out of the sky.


	3. Chapter 3: Plane Truths

Indiana James and the Temple of Gloom

**Chapter 3**

The plane was now skimming low over the jungle below, clipping the tops of trees as it went. Everyone screamed when they heard heard one of the wings sheer off. It was clear that the plane was breaking apart as came down.

Suddenly, abruptly, all hell broke loose. In the next moment and just as abruptly, everything stopped. Then there was silence, broken only by the natural sounds of the jungle and the rain.

* * *

Someone was shaking Carlos's shoulder and talking to him in Spanish.

Whoever it was became more insistent and was interrupting his dream. He on was a plane trip somewhere and he was dreaming that they were in trouble…Carlos started to stir. His neck was sore and he felt stiff all over. He shifted slowly in his seat, relieved it was all a dream when he realized he was indeed still strapped in his seat. What an awful dream that had been. He opened his eyes and blinked. The first thing he saw was Teo's face.

"_Que bien amigo_ (You okay, buddy)?" Teo asked.

Carlos frowned. Now he began to take in his surroundings. He was still in his seat, still in the plane, what was left of it. There was a gaping hole in the side of the plane and he could see rain pouring in the jungle just beyond. Carlos looked around, his frantic eyes searching the area around him for his friends.

"Guys?" he croaked, his voice filled with dread. It was so…quiet. And unless Big Time Rush was asleep, it was _never _quiet. "Logan? Kendall? James?" He fumbled with his seatbelt, shaky fingers refusing to obey.

Logan groaned from beneath the seat he had originally been in. "Oh, man…" He got to his knees and shook his head, as if trying to gather his senses. "What happ—how did I—" Brown eyes snapped wide open with realization. "OH MY GOD!"

At last Carlos popped open his seat belt and stood on shaking legs. It felt to him like the plane was on an incline with the nose pointing up. He climbed over debris from the plane and its contents, and helped Logan stand. They surveyed the cabin together. Half the seats had been torn loose, and backpacks and camp gear were strewn around along with chunks of the plane's interior. Some of it appeared to be floating. The front of the plane was dry and sitting on a small strip of sand, but the back appeared to be taking on water, and the edge of the water was getting closer to them.

Carlos and Logan looked at each other with dread and began trying to comb through the debris. "Kendall! James!"

Towards the back of the plane, Logan saw a chunk of wall panel shift and heard a splash. He crawled over seats and other debris, calling back "Kendall! Carlos, give me a hand!" But before Carlos could get to him, Kendall was already pushing a large, heavy pack to one side and trying to sit up, the back of him soaking wet.

Accepting his friends' offered hands, Kendall pulled himself to his feet. "You guys okay?"

Carlos nodded. "A little sore. My head hurts but I don't think it's serious."

"Me, too," said Logan. "Oh, wait…I take that back. Ribs are a little bruised, but otherwise, yeah, I think I'm okay."

Teo nodded, too. "We were all very lucky. I don't know what happened—the storm—"

"We can talk about that later," Kendall interrupted, his green eyes flashing with anger."And we _will_—but right now, where's James?"

The three bandmates began to dig around inside the plane. Being such a small plane, it didn't take long for a search to turn up nothing.

Kendall sat back on his heels to think and looked at the gaping hole in the side of the plane. "Guys?"

Carlos, Logan, and Teo followed his gaze.

"James," the BTR boys breathed in unison. Carlos closed his eyes tightly for a moment, trying to hold back tears. Not now. Not yet. Maybe it wasn't as bad as it looked. Oh, but it looked SO bad!

One by one they stepped outside of the wreckage. The plane had come down on the edge of a lagoon within a small clearing. From the outside, the plane itself looked worse than expected. The left wing had been completely sheared off, the actual tail of the plane was several yards behind the fuselage, the windshield was smashed and the front propeller was missing as well. Plane parts and camping gear were scattered across the forest floor or floating in the lagoon. What was left of the main fuselage was balanced on the lagoon's edge and looked ready to slide into the water at any moment. At least the rain was finally letting up.

Kendall cupped his hands around his mouth. "JAMES?"

Carlos started to do the same and then stopped. He grabbed Logan's shoulder and pointed.

A few yards to their left, an upturned seat was half-floating in the lagoon, and it looked like James was thrashing around trying to free himself from it and at the same time, keep from drowning. Only the bottom of the seat was designed to be used for floating, so the seat was rocking and turning in the water as James fought to get loose. He tried to call out to his friends, but only ended up spitting and choking out water. In an instant, everyone was in the water. Carlos led the way, swimming with long, powerful strokes and was the first to reach his friend.

"Help…me!" James choked out. His fingers were working the belt, but the clasp was stuck. Teo produced a knife from his pocket and cut at the strap while the others tried to hold the seat steady. James plunged into the water and then all five of them were swimming back toward the plane. A few moments later and everyone was on the sand near the front of the plane.

"I swear I felt an anaconda in there," said Logan, glancing back at the lagoon.

Kendall was panting, water dripping off his hair. "Okay…everybody all right?"

James nodded, breathless, and dropped onto the sand beside his friends.

Logan studied the plane. "Guys? There's camp stuff on the plane. We gotta get everything we can find before it sinks to the bottom of the lagoon. By the looks of things, we could lose the plane, too."

"Well, one thing's sure," said Carlos. "It's not flying out of here."

As if to support this point, there was a groan of metal. The guys all straightned at once.

"Let's move," said Kendall. "Let's get everything out of the plane and see what we have. And don't forget the stuff that's scattered around. Anything could be useful."

The guy set about pulling things out of the plane: backpacks, a tent, some rope, blankets, and a first aid kit and flashlight from the plane's cockpit. Logan and Teo tried to get the radio to work, but it was messed up like much of the rest of the cockpit.

"I found a map and a compass," James called out. "Oh, and here's my hat." He scooped it up, and after inspecting it for damage and reshaping it a little, put it back on his head.

"Not that thing again," groaned Logan.

Carlos was hopeful. "But a map and compass, that's a good thing."

"Carlos is right," Logan agreed. "Once we get everything inventoried, we can figure out where we are."

It looked to the boys that whoever owned the plane had been packing for a camping trip. All the basics were there, at least enough for three people. It wasn't enough for five, but it was a good start.

"Hey, guys! Look what I found!" Carlos was grinning from ear to ear. He held up two machetes he had found inside the plane. "They almost slipped away but I got 'em."

Kendall grinned back. "Those will definitely be useful."

Once the plane was emptied, the boys began to fan out around the area, picking up whatever they could find. Kendall and James together found a tent, and so did Logan and Carlos. They all returned to the plane at the same time. A closer inspection of the tent Logan and Carlos showed that the tent was too torn up to be useful anymore. With a collective sigh of exhaustion, the four bandmates stepped back from the pile of recovered items and sat on the ground to rest.

"Well, that's that," said Logan. "Say, where's Teo?" He stood up again to look around. "And didn't we have three backpacks?"

"And where's one of the machetes?" added Carlos.

"The map!" Kendall shouted. "Unbelievable! While we were looking around for stuff, he took the map, took some of the equipment, and took off"

Carlos didn't want to believe it. "Why would he leave us here?"

"Because he doesn't want to get caught for stealing a plane!"

"And for getting us killed," said James.

"We're not dead yet. We're gonna get out of here." Kendall wasn't sure he believed that himself, but it sounded good and he hoped it would be enough for now.

James stood up. It was bad, but when the four of them together, how bad could anything really be? "Don't worry, gentlemen! You've got…Indiana James!"

With a shrill cry of rage and frustration, Logan lunged at James full force. The blow was enough to knock him to the ground, sending his hat rolling to one side. Logan was straddling the larger boy, punching and scratching as James tried to defend himself. "This is all YOUR fault! You and your stupid adventures!"

"Get him off me! Get him off!" James was backed against a tree, trying to fend off his angry bandmate.

Carlos and Kendall pulled Logan away. "Stop it! STOP IT!"

Logan turned on Kendall, furious. "You always encourage him! Whenever he wants to do something stupid! Him and his stupid fantasies!"

Kendall replied, his voice even, "It was one of his stupid fantasies that made us a band."

But Logan was not to be denied as he turned on Carlos. "And you always agree with James!"

"No, I don't!"

James stood up, dusting off his cargo pants with his hat. "Look at it this way. We're really on an adventure!" He smiled, flashing perfect white teeth, but only Kendall could see that the smile didn't quite reach his eyes.

"An adventure?!" Carlos let out a war cry and tackled James, driving them both back against the tree. Blinded by his fiery temper, he struck James in the face with a right hook followed by a left. With a long, wild howl, he grabbed James by the shoulders and shook him as hard as he could, repeatedly striking the back of James' head against the tree. Even though Carlos was a good eight inches shorter and 30 pounds lighter, he was all muscle and very wiry, and James was having trouble dislodging him. The blows to his head weren't helping him fight back either, each one making his vision blur a little.

Kendall turned to Logan, who was standing with his arms folded across his chest. "Help me get him off him!"

"Why?"

"Logan!"

"Oh, all _right_."

Together they managed to pry the scrappy Latino off of James. James's right eye was already starting to blacken, his lip was split, and there was a small trickle of blood from his nose. He reached back gingerly and felt a lump growing at the back of his head.

Carlos looked down at him, still trembling with anger and fear. "There," he sneered. "I fixed your 'pretty' for you."

"Come on," said Kendall. "Let's walk. Maybe seeing some monkeys will help calm you down."

"It might," the smaller boy conceded. Logan and Kendall led him away, leaving James behind.

When they returned an hour later, Carlos and Logan were much calmer. As a group, they needed to work together now more than ever to figure out how to get out of this mess. They would need to set up some kind of camp for now as they planned their next move. As they were nearing the crash site, Kendall saw smoke over the trees.

"Guys? I think the plane's on fire!"

"James!" cried Carlos.

The three broke into a run, dreading what they might find. As they broke into the clearing, they stopped. The smoke was coming from a small campfire. James was sitting in front of it with two tents set up nearby.

"Oh, hey, guys!" James waved as they approached.

Kendall stared. "You…did all this?"

"I know you don't think much of the Boy Scouts when it comes to survival, Kendall, but…"

"Okay, well, I was wrong…I guess. I'm impressed now. Good work."

Logan was looking at James's face. There was still a little dried blood under his nose, some scratches on his face and neck, and his black eye was definitely swelling. He gave James an apologetic smile. "Did I do all that?"

James shook his head and winced. "No, I think a good part of it was probably Carlos."

"Hey," said Carlos. "I'm really sorry, man. I know you meant well. And we did all go along with this whole thing."

"If it's anyone's fault," Kendall added, "it's Teo's. And there's nothing we can do about him now. Did you find any food in those backpacks?"

James sighed. "There's a box of MRE's, but there's not a lot there even if we ration it. There's no equipment for hunting or fishing, but we're in a jungle, we're bound to find something to eat if it comes to that."

"How soon would it have to come to that?" Kendall looked into James' hazel eyes and could not remember when he'd ever seen him look more serious than right this moment.

"Real soon."

"Let's wait till morning to eat, then," Logan suggested. "I'll pair up with Carlos, and Kendall, you can bunk with James, okay? Done!"

"Done," said Carlos.

"Done," said Kendall. "And if we're not going to eat, let's at least try to get some sleep, okay?"

James was staring into the fire as the others started to go. "There's netting in the tents and there's some repellant, too. At least that's what it looks like—my Spanish isn't that good. Better ask Carlos before using it."

Kendall paused. "What about you? You didn't say 'done.'"

James forced a smile. "Done."

"Okay. And with that bump on your head, shouldn't you be getting some sleep, too?"

"In a few minutes."

Kendall touched James' shoulder and spoke in a low voice so only James could hear. "You know this isn't your fault, right? They're just mad because they're scared. We all are. And Teo's not here to beat the living crap out of."

"I know," James said quietly, his eyes still gazing into the flames.

Kendall shrugged. Just before he entered his tent, he glanced back at James one more time. His friend was normally so confident, so self-assured. James had been there for them when it counted, helping Logan ask a girl to a dance, or helping Kendall get over a breakup. When they played hockey, James could take whatever came his way and come out on top. But right now Kendall knew that despite reassurances, James was feeling guilty, defeated, and alone. Maybe things would look better for all of them in the morning.

Maybe.


	4. Chapter 4: Taking a Hike

Indiana James and the Temple of Gloom

Notes: I know there's more of the other guys than James in this chapter, but things are gonna get busy soon...

* * *

Kelly Wainwright was pacing the hotel suite, phone in hand, and trying to get the person at the other end of the line to understand her.

"No, no. I need to know how long…how…long…_cuanto tiempo_…yes, _si_…How long?" She sighed and rolled her eyes. The language barrier was challenge enough but by now she was convinced the contractors were giving her the runaround. "Okay, thank you, _gracias_." She thumbed the phone off, exasperated.

"Well?" Gustavo was leaning back in a chair, carefully sipping at the watery, milky, lukewarm concoction Room Service had insisted was a nonfat, dry latte with a dollop of foam and an extra shot of espresso.

"I don't know. I'm not sure. And since I don't speak Spanish, I'm _really _not sure. They originally said one day, and then it was three days. And now they don't know. It's looking more and more like we're definitely going to have to reschedule and let people trade in their tickets for a later date. We have some time to add a day at the end of the tour before we leave South America."

"And the dogs?"

"I sent the boys a text that they could have 3 days to explore and take a little mini-vacation. They've worked so hard, they've earned it. And Rio's right after Lima. That's in about 4 days…" Kelly chewed her lip. "But I don't know…"

"What now?" Gustavo put his feet up and settled into the chair.

She shook her head. "Nothing. Just a feeling. Maybe I should send Kendall a text. Just to make sure they're all right."

"Don't bother. I bet they don't answer. Knowing them, they're probably on the beach—-"

"Remember London?"

Gustavo looked at her sharply. "Never speak of London," he said in rough, low voice. In the next moment, he tried to keep his voice casual. "You know," he said airily, 'text Kendall anyway. Now. In fact, text all of them."

* * *

When Kendall woke up, his tent was empty. James must be feeling okay after that fight yesterday. Just before they fell asleep, Kendall had taken a quick look at the back of James' head. There was quite a knot growing there and James had hissed in pain when Kendall touched it. Now James had apparently awakened and got up. And it was quiet. Too quiet. Kendall crawled out of the tiny 2-man tent and looked around for his bandmates.

It was a little past dawn, and in the morning light of the rain forest, their situation didn't look any better than it had the day before. Now what was left of the plane was slipping further into the lagoon, with two-thirds being underwater. The gear they'd salvaged was damp and in the clear light of a new day, it didn't look like much. At least not enough for a prolonged jungle stay, Kendall was sure of that.

"Hey, guys?"

Silence. Kendall checked the other tent and it was empty, too. Now he was getting nervous. If the guys were gone, that meant even Logan was up early, something Logan never did when they were on tour.

"GUYS? James! Carlos! Logan!"

Still nothing. Then there was the sound of something in the jungle around him. A monkey, maybe. Or a jaguar? Whatever it was, it was getting closer and seemed to be coming at him from all directions. Kendall held his breath, wishing he had a weapon of some sort. He looked around him, but he didn't see the machete and that was the closest thing to some kind of defense that they had. They'd found a pocketknife and a small hunting knife stowed in one of the backpacks but neither was much of a defense against a jungle animal. At least not unless it was very _small _animal.

Just as Kendall was starting to feel more panicky than he would ever admit, his bandmates - clearly the source of the noises - emerged from the jungle. All of them had their hands full. Carlos was the first to reach Kendall.

"Look what I found! Mangos—and some coconuts!"

"I got us some bananas," added Logan.

Just then James joined the group. His eye was definitely blackened but his lip looked less swollen than last night. "I think I did better than you guys." He had an armful of fresh eggs. "I found a nest! I can make my killer omelets."

Logan frowned, studying James' contribution to breakfast. "Those eggs. Bird? Or reptile?"

James shrugged. "Is it really gonna matter at this point? It's eggs."

Kendall closed his eyes tightly as his stomach lurched. Whatever they were, he was going to _tell _himself they were hen's, eggs as he was choking them down later. "This is great, but why all this? I thought we had MREs."

"We do," said Logan. "And some of it is freeze-dried stuff. In fact, there's a packet in there labelled 'scrambled egg plate.'"

"We tried it," Carlos added, making a face. "James says he and his dad used to eat that stuff when they went camping, but trust me, It's disgusting. So we decided to look around."

As it turned out, it was a good thing James could make a killer omelet. The eggs were definitely not hen's eggs, but they were edible protein. Luckily, the fruit they'd found helped offset the texture and the aftertaste. There was also coffee that had been packed in the plane, and James showed Logan how to make it cowboy style.

They sat along the lagoon, finally fed and now sipping the hot, black coffee.

"I miss Mom and Katie," said Kendall at last.

"I miss your mom and Katie, too," added James.

Logan's mouth quirked in a half-smile as he glanced at James. "I even miss _your _mom."

"Mean!" James gave him sort-of, not-quite, maybe-not playful punch in the shoulder.

"Ow!"

Carlos and Kendall just laughed.

Once breakfast was done and cleaned up, the boys broke camp.

"We have two backpacks," said Carlos. "I vote we take turns carrying them."

"Done," each of his friends echoed in turn.

"Now which way?" Logan asked.

Kendall turned to James. "You're the one who was the boy scout. What do you think?"

"We follow the river."

"James is right," agreed Logan as he shouldered a backpack. "Historically, civilization is always near a water source. If we follow the river, we're bound to come across someone, a camp or maybe even a village or town that can help us."

Carlos was unconvinced. "But for how long and how far? We don't know how long that'll take. Why can't we stay put and wait for someone to find the plane?"

"Carlos has a point, too."

As if in answer, the plane began to make a shreiking, scraping noise as it slid off the embankment and into the lagoon with a splash. The guys watched in stunned silence as the wreckage disappeared below the water. There was a series of large bubbles on the surface of the water and then nothing more.

"It's gone," Carlos whispered. "Now what?"

"Well," said James with a shrug. "It's not like we could have flown it out of here."

"But now if anyone's looking for us, no one will find it!" Panic was creeping into Carlos's voice, and Kendall could see in his friends' eyes that they were starting to feel the same.

"Guys," said Kendall, pulling on the other backpack. "I'm telling you: we're going to make it. And do you wanna know how I know?"

Logan sniffed deeply. "I smell speech."

"Because we can do this," said Kendall. "—if we stick together. Everything that's ever happened to us we've gotten through together. We're not just a band. We're best friends. We've been camping before. And we can get through this and get back to civilization and our moms and Gustavo and our fans."

Logan shook his head. "Yeah, not one of your better speeches. Might I point out that camping in the woods in Minnesota for a week or so is a lot different than—oh, I don't know—fighting to survive in a jungle for who knows how long?!"

Carlos nodded. "I agree with Logan."

"Yeah," added James. "Even with the boy scouts, I'm gonna agree with Logan, too."

Kendall sighed. Clearly the power of a rousing motivational speech had its limitations. "Well, one thing's certain."

"And what's that?"

"We have no choice. So let's move out! James, we'll follow you."

James gave them a grim nod, his mouth set in a tight line. And with that, he adjusted his hat, and started hiking down river, keeping as close to the bank of the river as possible.

* * *

It was late in the afternoon when Kelly met up with Gustavo in their hotel suite.

"I can't reach any of them."

"Who?" Gustavo was was half-listening as he sat at a portable keyboard in the middle of the shared sitting room. He was still trying to work out the kinks of a new song he'd begun before the tour, and it was starting to feel like more effort than it seemed to be worth.

"The dogs. Or monkeys. Or monkey dogs. You always confuse me with that stuff. The boys. I don't know where they are, but they told me at the desk that the none of them have used their electronic room keys."

Gustavo still hadn't looked up from the keyboard as he experimented with another chord. "And?"

"That means," she said, moving to stand in front of him while trying to control her temper, "that the boys haven't been back to their room since yesterday."

"Didn't you tell them to take a little vacation?" At last he looked up at her.

"Gustavo! They're not answering their phones, they're not answering their texts, and they haven't slept in their beds. We're in a strange country, we don't speak the language, and I'm worried."

"Give them another 24 hours."

"What?!"

"Look, you're the one who gave them a vacation. As long as they're back here before we fly to Rio, everything will be fine. Besides, we don't want to trigger an international incident if we don't have to, do we?"

"But—"

"If they're not back here before we leave, we'll call the police, okay? And they'd better be."

Kelly frowned, barely containing her anger. Gustavo's need to avoid any negative publicity drove her crazy sometimes and this was definitely one of those times. "Fine. But if they're not back here at least 12 hours before we leave, I'm calling the police. _And Griffin_."

Gustavo started at that, but forced a smile. "Okay, we have a deal then." Deep down, he really hoped he was right. He was Gustavo Rocque, he was amazing. And he had to be right about this. The alternative was not something he wanted to think about.

* * *

James' legs were feeling like jelly. The rugged jungle terrain and muggy heat during what had become an all-day hike was getting to him. He had suggested a couple of stops along the way, wanting his friends to pace themselves more, but as tired as they were all becoming, he knew they were even more eager to find rescue.

At each twist and turn along the riverbank, he kept hoping they'd find something, but all they saw was more jungle and more river. Sometimes they had to hike into the jungle when it became too dense or dangerous to follow along the riverbank. James' arms were aching, too, from swinging the machete against the tough vegetation.

Kendall was feeling the same. After the first hour or two of hiking, Kendall had decided the strange omelet he'd had for breakfast wasn't going to kill him after all and it had even stayed down. Carlos was now taking his turn with the backpack so Kendall was finding it easier to keep up with James. He had kept his eyes on the back of James' sweat-soaked shirt as they climbed over downed trees and hacked through dense underbrush. Now, since James was carrying the backpack Logan had, and James' leather jacket had been stuffed inside, Kendall kept an eye on the faded green backpack ahead of him, afraid of losing visual contact at every bend.

Logan followed Kendall, relieved that James now had 'his' backpack. His shoulders ached at least as much as his legs. He stayed mostly lost in his own thoughts, trying to recall as much about the Amazon as he could. He always read up on the places where Big Time Rush toured before they left home, but this time there hadn't been as much time as he'd have liked. It was too bad, too, that Teo had taken the map with him because now they couldn't even be sure they were heading in the right direction. Logan felt a flash of anger over that but just as quickly set it aside. Since there was nothing they could do about it, it didn't matter now.

Carlos was trying his best to stay positive as he brought up the rear. For his part, he loved monkeys but he found himself growing sick of them as they chattered and swung through the trees above. He'd have been just as happy, if not more so, to see a dog or even a cat about now. Especially if it was in their Palmwoods apartment. Or just to see their Palmwoods apartment without any dogs or cats. He was tired and he was sore, but if the rest of Big Time Rush wasn't taking much of a rest, then neither was he. Every now and then he'd hum one of their songs to himself and it would cheer him a little, making it easier to keep going. At least if he was stranded out here, he was stranded surrounded by his best friends. At least there was that.

The jungle opened up to a wide strip of sand along the river. James stopped, swung the backpack off his shoulders and dropped it to the ground as his friends came up behind him.

"Is it my turn now?" Logan reluctantly reached out for it, but let his hand drop when James shook his head in response.

"Let's make camp here," said James. "It's getting late. I think we're all too tired to go much further and we don't know if we'd find another spot before dark where we can set up camp. Done?"

"Ooooh, done," groaned Kendall as he stretched out on the sand, hands laced behind his head.

"Done." Logan nodded, sitting beside Kendall and drawing up his knees.

"Done," Carlos echoed beside Logan. He dropped the backpack and leaned against it.

James smiled. "Don't get too comfortable, gentlemen. We still have to break out the tents and make a fire."

"And eat," added Carlos. "Can we open an MRE this time?"

Logan looked at him. "I thought you said they were gross."

"So did you. But right now? I don't care. I'm hungry."

James dug into his backpack. "We'll open two and share halves. Who wants turkey tettrazini?" Logan and Kendall raised their hands. "Carlos, it looks like it's lentil stew for us. Maybe we can find some fruit for dessert."

By the time darkness fell, the meals were done, the camp was set up, and the guys sat close together, gazing into the small campfire.

Softly, James began to sing to himself.

_There were so many things that I never ever got to say._

_'Coz I'm always tongue-tied with my words getting in the way._

_If you could read my mind_

_Then all your doubts would be left behind_

_And every little thing would be falling into place…_

_And I would scream to the world_

_They might see you're my girl_

Each of his bandmates joined in until all of them were singing in harmony together under the stars, accompanied only by the sounds of the jungle around them and the river.

_But I just keep gettin'_

_Stuck, stuck_

_But I'm never givin' up, up._

_In the middle of a perfect day…_

When the song ended, they sat together in silence for a long moment before crawling into their tents. Moments later they each fell into a dreamless sleep.


	5. Chapter 5: Quicksand

**Chapter 5**

It poured through much of the night.

Despite a persistent headache and tired as he was, James found it almost impossible to sleep. He rolled onto his back and turned to look at Kendall but as close as he was, it was too dark to see him. The jungle was too thick for much moonlight and there was no fire because of the rain. But he could hear Kendall's loud, steady breathing, oblivious to the downpour that threatened to breach the tent and James felt a pang of envy for being able to sleep through it all.

He sighed, laced his fingers behind his head, and stared up at the wet tent roof. Between the whole 'Indiana James' thing, and the fact that he was only one who'd been in Boy Scouts - and liked it - he was feeling the pressure more than he wanted his friends to know. Kendall expected him to know what he was doing and help the rest of them. He'd led them the entire way, using the machete to clear a path and they'd followed him without question down every fork he'd chosen. Now James lay there in the darkness, listening to the rain and considering their options for what felt like the hundredth time, and wondering if his choices had been good ones. They were lost, that was obvious. And since no one was going to know where to look for them, they had to find a way out of the jungle on their own. They'd now been following the river for over a day and a half and so far, and they had yet to see any signs of civilization at all. He'd hoped they'd have found something by now. His usual confidence was starting to slip away and he wondered how long it'd be before his friends saw that, too.

He hadn't noticed Kendall's breathing had changed, so he nearly startled out of his skin when the blond spoke.

"James…go to sleep."

"You first."

Kendall rolled onto his side and propped his head up on his elbow. "Okay. We've trekked through the jungle for nearly two days. We're hot, wet, tired, and not a little smelly. You should be as exhausted as the rest of us."

James forced a smile. "Don't worry. I am."

"So go to sleep."

"I'm workin' on it."

"Look, no matter what anybody said, it's not your fault, okay?"

"I know…"

"Don't you believe me?"

"Sure. But it feels like you're trusting me to - I don't know - really be 'Indiana James.'"

Kendall rolled his eyes. "No. I'm trusting you because you're my best friend."

James thought about that for a moment. At last he smiled and turned over to try to sleep. "Thanks, man."

Kendall fell back and yawned. "You're welcome…"

* * *

Kelly Wainright walked into Gustavo's bedroom with long, angry strides.

"How come you never knock anymore?" he whined at her.

"Look," she said, barely controlling her outrage. "It's been almost two days - TWO DAYS - since we've heard from the boys. I'm worried, and don't try to tell me you aren't, too! That's it! I'm not waiting until Rio, Gustavo! I'm alerting the Lima police and the embassy that the boys are missing."

As much as Gustavo wanted to admit his own worry, these were the dogs, after all, and it could just as easily be that they were just off on some adventure. Although convincing himself of this was getting harder.

"But—"

"No! No 'buts'! I just got off the phone with Jennifer Knight. She hasn't heard from Kendall either, and it was all I could to reassure her that - as far as we _know _- the boys are fine. I'm done waiting."

Gustavo looked at her like a little boy who had been punished unfairly. "I was only going to say 'but wait for me to change into a suit and I'll go with you.'"

Kelly began to calm down, at least a little. "Oh. Well…Okay then. I'll wait out here. But make it quick, okay?"

* * *

It was another hot, sticky morning when the boys slowly crawled from their tents. Everything was too wet for a fire, so they settled for eating some of the fruit they had gathered the day before. It was strangely quiet for the four bandmates of Big Time Rush. Finally Carlos broke the awkward silence.

"Soooo…what now?"

James could feel three pairs of eyes on him as he slowly chewed a large bite of mango. He looked up at them and swallowed. "What? We keep following the river."

Logan jumped to his feet, shouting. "We've _been _following the river! Have we seen anyone yet?" He gestured with both arms. "Look around, James! There's NOBODY! There's no civilization ANYWHERE!"

Kendall stayed seated, his eyes fixed on a spot on the ground a few feet in front of him. "Logan," he said quietly, not looking at his friend.

The shorter boy stopped and then dropped back to the ground, sitting hunched over, his head lowered in defeat. "I just wanna go _home_," he muttered.

"We all do. But the fact is there's not a lot of options. So we keep going, right, James?"

James nodded and then turned to Logan. "Dude, we're gonna make it. Hang on, okay?"

Logan rubbed his face with his hands. "Yeah. Sure." He stood up and brushed off his pants. "Might as well get started, right?"

* * *

If there was another word to describe the rain forest besides 'hot', 'wet' was certainly a good one. The boys were soaked to the skin and their clothes dragged on their bodies. The backpacks that James and Logan were carrying were even heavier despite the fact that they contained less food now.

Kendall was hiking a few feet behind James, with Logan behind him and Carlos bringing up the rear. Kendall was keeping a wary eye on the tall brunet. He knew that James was putting on a brave face for all of them and usually he was pretty good at it. Not great, but at least good. The mask was slipping and that was making Kendall worry. If they were going to survive, they needed each band mate to be at the top of his game because this was one time they couldn't afford to fail. He'd seen early on that his usual rousing speech wasn't going to cut it, so he'd have to work on each of his friends one at a time. At least as long as his own confidence held out. And that made him worry more.

By midday, the thick underbrush had given way from thick undergrowth and brush to alternating patches of marsh and sand as Big Time Rush trudged along. James was grateful for the change in scenery. The muscles in his arms were burning from swinging the machete. He took another step and it felt like something was grabbing at his foot.

Quicksand.

"Hey, guys—," he called out as he yanked his leg free.

Before he could finish his warning, there was a shout followed by Logan screaming "Carlos!"

James and Kendall both spun around just in time to see where Logan was pointing and gesturing wildly. Carlos was struggling in a patch of quicksand, sunk in until he was mid-calf deep, his brown eyes wide with panic as he tried to pull each of his feet free.

James and Logan shrugged out of the backpacks and joined Kendall who was already at the edge of the quicksand pit trying to get closer to his trapped friend.

"Don't!" James yelled, putting up his hand.

Kendall looked at him and backed off. "What do we do?"

Logan was thinking out loud, trying not to panic along with Carlos. He'd read something…awhile back…His mind raced as he struggled to remember the details. He always panicked under pressure, just like he'd told Kendall when they'd first auditioned for Gustavo, and then he couldn't think straight. Now he was struggling to follow his train of thought and not let the panic get the better of him.

"Ah…viscosity…and buoyancy…the human body has less density…Carlos, stop struggling! You're making it worse!"

By now, Carlos had sunk in past his knees and he was struggling harder. "Guys! HELP!"

"Carlos! Calm down! You have to calm down," Logan insisted.

Carlos' eyes met Logan's and he forced himself to get his own emotions under control. Carlos stood stock still, watching Logan, transfixed, waiting for Logan to tell him what to do next. His instincts were screaming at him to keep fighting but Logan was The Smart One, after all, and right now, Carlos was counting on that more than he ever had before.

"Okay, good. Now…Lean back, and slowly - _very _slowly - wiggle your legs. Eventually you'll start to float. Got it?"

Carlos nodded. "Lean back…wiggle my legs…" He wasn't sure at first, but then a moment later he thought he could feel the watery sand shift. Not a lot, but at least it was something. "I think…hey, I think it's working!"

"It's gonna take awhile, so just…just stay like that. Don't pull, okay?"

"Got it. Wiggle my legs," Carlos echoed as he felt the quicksand loosen some more. He was still trying to lay on his back, and now that he had sunk deeper, that was getting easier to do. "…let myself float…"

"Good. You're doing great."

"What do I do once I'm floating?"

"You'll use your arms to propel yourself out of the quicksand. Whatever you do, you've gotta move _slowly_. Got it?"

"Use my arms. Yeah. Got it." Carlos could feel the wet sand at his lower back. He trusted Logan completely, and that made it easier to follow his instructions. He didn't need to think about it - he knew his best friends had his back and that was enough. In fact, it was everything.

It seemed to take hours as his friends watched and waited, helpless to do anything else. At last Carlos was floating flat on his back on top of the quicksand pit, his legs finally free and covered in wet sand. Inch by inch, he used his arms to propel himself out of the middle of the quicksand. When he was finally able to reach the edge of the pit, Kendall and James each grabbed one of his outstretched hands and pulled him the rest of the way. Once they were sure all of them were completely clear, the four band mates collapsed on the ground, out of breath.

"You okay?" Kendall was pretty sure Carlos was fine, but he felt he should at least ask.

Carlos nodded, still waiting for his heart rate and breathing to get back to normal. "Thanks, guys. That was close."

"You know, you wouldn't have sunk completely," Logan said matter-of-factly as he shrugged back into the backpack.

"Yeah, good to know. _Not helping!_"

"Well, you wouldn't."

"New plan," said James, who was now holding a long, thin branch. "We use sticks like this one to test the ground in front of us when we're hiking around sand, okay?"

Kendall raised his eyebrows. "It would've been nice to have thought of that before!"

James grinned. He had obviously made his peace with not being 'Indiana James, Jungle Hero'. "Yeah, wouldn't it?"

Kendall's expression dissolved into a grin of understanding mixed with relief. "Come on. Let's get outta here."

"Hey, guys? Getting out of quicksand made me hungry. Can we stop soon and eat? Once we're on solid ground, I mean."

"Done," chorused his friends.

* * *

An hour later the boys had had finally stopped to rest. They happened on a clearing fringed by thick brush and and just a few yards from the river. James and Kendall scavenged for wood that wasn't soaked while Carlos neatly organized their gear and Logan set to refilling their canteen. As near as he could tell, there were places where the river water was clean enough, and so far none of them had gotten sick drinking it.

When Logan rejoined the group, James had managed to coax the damp wood into a small, smoky campfire. Once James was sure the fire would stay lit, he dug into the backpack he'd been carrying and frowned.

"There's not much left."

"I never thought I'd say this," Carlos replied. "But I'm sick of mangoes. And bananas. And coconuts."

"I'm just sick of fruit in general," added Logan as he joined the group. "Carlos, what are you doing?"

Carlos had the machete in one hand and a long, thin branch in the other. "I'm making us a spear. Maybe we can use it to hunt something."

"Like monkeys?" Kendall gave him an evil grin.

Carlos' face fell. Kendall was well aware that Carlos loved monkeys and would've had one if they'd let him. "_No_. Maybe ocelots," he fired back, knowing that was Kendall's particular favorite.

"Touché."

"I had snake once." James grinned. "It was sort of like chicken."

Logan shook his head. "Okay, James, you know-? I'm not _that _hungry…_yet_. But when I am, I'll let you know."

"This one says it's chicken stew. I think we can make four lunches out of that. Really, really small ones."

Kendall sighed. "Fine."

The four boys lingered around the small fire. It was good to be off their feet for awhile and just rest. James took his hat off and whiped his forehead as Logan started to snicker.

"What's so funny?" asked Carlos.

"James, you really should see your hair. You know, I haven't heard you mention it once in the past two days, and now it's just…wild-looking."

James jumped to his feet with a yelp of outrage. Now that Logan had mentioned it, he could only imagine what his hair looked like, and that imagination was running wild.

An unsympathetic Logan just laughed all the harder. Carlos half-grinned, feeling a little awkward. James' hair wasn't _that_ funny, and he knew as well as Logan how James felt about it. James had once said that even if he was alone on a deserted island, how his hair looked would matter because '_I'm_ there.'

"Thanks for that," James said. "If you need any more wood for the fire - I'll be by the river so you can get it yourself." He shot Logan one last angry look before walking away.

"Watch out for the crocodiles!" Logan called out.

"Uncool," said Kendall to his friend. "You know that, right?"

Logan was still laughing. He looked at Kendall with feigned innocence. "What? The wild-looking bit? It is! C'mon!"

Kendall poked at the fire. "I didn't want to say anything, but…he hasn't been sleeping much the past two nights, he's so afraid of letting us down."

Logan's grin faded. "That's stupid. He's not letting anyone down. It's not all about him. We're in this together."

"Yeah, but now that we're stuck out here, he's taking this 'Indiana James' thing a little too seriously."

Logan rolled his eyes and sighed. "James? Taking something a little too seriously? That never happens."

"I'm just sayin'—"

"Okay, okay…I'm hot, I'm tired, and I'm still hungry after that 'lunch.' And no, Carlos, before you say it—I'm not ready to eat snakes. Maybe I was just…taking that out on James. I'll apologize when he comes back."


	6. Chapter 6: Company

Indiana James and the Temple of Gloom

**Chapter 6**

James stood by the river and looked across it, taking a deep breath. He bent down, picked up some stones and started skipping them as far as he could across the water while he tried to get his emotions under control. He wanted to be 'Indiana James.' He'd even settle for 'Bandana Man' right now. He was just as tired and hungry and - truth be told - scared as everyone else, couldn't Logan see that? But Logan was being an ass about it and James knew that if he'd stayed there any longer, Logan would have a black eye to match the one he'd given James.

The rain had stopped for awhile now and the tiniest bit of dusky sunlight glinted off the middle of the river, where it wasn't overshadowed by the tall trees overhead. James wrinkled his nose. Kendall was right - They all were more than a little smelly. A quick skinny dip wouldn't be a bad thing, he reasoned. Yeah, there were anacondas and probably piranhas and crocodiles and who-knows-what, but if he was quick and stayed close to the shore, he'd probably be alright.

He unbuttoned his shirt and then paused. Something moved, rippling the top of the water. A croc, maybe? James squinted at the surface of the river and decided it might be better to move a little further down river, just in case he might be disturbing something that didn't want to be disturbed. He followed along the river as it sloped down. He came around a small bend and found a waterfall, just a little taller than he was, where the river forked before merging again just less than a hundred yards away.

Perfect!

He kicked off his shoes and socks as he shrugged out of his shirt. Folding the shirt carefully, he set it on the ground. Then he dropped his cargo pants to his ankles and stepped out of them, before folding them too and laying them on top of his shirt. Finally he pulled off his black bikini briefs and dropped them onto the pile. He might have to burn those later, he thought, as he waded into the rushing water. Cool water hit his back and cascaded down his body. Soap would have been nice but this felt so good after being hot and sweaty and sticky and rain-soaked. For a moment, he paused, feeling like someone was watching him. James looked around but saw no one. Maybe it was a monkey or maybe it was one of the guys. He shrugged to himself and stood in the cascading water just a little longer.

Finally he waded out of the water. He stood on the river bank and again he hesitated, looking all around him. He still couldn't shake the feeling that he was being watched.

"Logan? If that's you, man, it's not funny."

Nothing.

"Kendall? Carlos?" The silence was unnerving. Maybe it was best to get his clothes on and get back to camp as fast as possible.

James reached for his shirt and jumped back, startled, as a small scorpion scuttled away. He decided to put his shoes on first. You couldn't tell what might be crawling around, and stepping on one of those scorpions would suck. He picked up his shoes and inspected the inside of each of them as a precaution before putting them on.

He picked up his pants and dropped them again with a cry. The huge, swarthy guy stepping out of the underbrush and leering at him way too huge to be Logan. A moment later, a second man followed. He was slightly smaller but still huge.

"_Que estan haciendo aqui_ (what are you doing here)?" The bigger one demanded.

James forced a smile and covered his nudity with his hands.

_"Hola."_ At that moment, he really wished his Spanish was better or that Carlos was here. He wasn't quite sure what he was being asked but he could hazard a guess, and he didn't know enough Spanish to explain. He at least wanted these guys to understand that he wasn't there to cause any trouble. "_No problemo_._"_ It sounded stupid, even to him, but it was the best he could do, standing naked, lost, and alone in jungle outnumbered and outweighed by two guy who didn't look the least bit friendly.

"Look…ah…if you'll excuse me a second, I'll just…just…"

He bent to reach for his clothes when the larger mystery man lunged toward him. Cut off from the direciton of his friends, James weaved past them and blindly took off running, plunging naked into the jungle. He could hear them just behind him. The jungle undergrowth pulled at his legs, threatening to trip him, and he was glad he at least still had his shoes on as he hurdled over a downed tree in one long, graceful leap. His lungs burned and he could hear them gaining on him.

Something caught at his ankles and he went down with a cry, landing face first. Something sat on his back, pinning him to the ground and an arm as thick as a tree trunk wrapped around his throat. James clawed at the arm as it began to squeeze. Pinpoints of light danced in front of his eyes and his lungs fought for air. He fought as hard as he could, fought for his life, but he was losing and he knew it. This was not how he thought his life would end: naked and lost in the middle of Wild Nowhere, far from his friends. And the worst part was he didn't even know why.

At last his body went limp. The smaller of two men got up off James' back. Together they turned over the young brunet. After making sure the young man was still alive, the bigger one tossed the singer over his shoulder and they disappeared back into the jungle.

* * *

Logan yawned and stretched. A nap had been just what he needed and now he was feeling a little better.

"Is James back yet? I still owe him that apology."

Carlos shook his head as he added more wood to the small campfire. "Haven't seen 'im."

Kendall emerged from the surrounding jungle and set down a bunch of bananas and a coconut.

Logan groaned. "Did I mention I'm really sick of bananas and coconuts?"

"Only about a hundred times," Carlos scoffed.

Kendall rolled his eyes. "Yeah, well, I don't think any pizza guy will deliver. Even if we had a way to call one."

That got a frustrated whine out of Logan. "You had to mention pizza."

Carlos' back straightened and he cocked his head. "Hey guys—do you hear something?"

Everyone went still for a long moment.

Kendall frowned. "Just the usual. Birds, monkeys…"

"Yeah," Carlos said at last, his voice soft. "Maybe that was it."

The boys set to preparing of the few remaining MREs. They had already decided to split just one instead of two and have that alongside the fruit Kendall had scrounged.

Logan was trying to open the coconut. He paused and wiped his forehead with his sleeve. "Hey, shouldn't James be back by now? It's starting to get dark."

"We should look for him," Carlos said. "Wasn't he headed for the river?"

"Logan, you and Carlos go. I'll stay here in case he comes back."

Logan nodded and the two headed in the direction James had gone.

It wasn't long before they found the same waterfall where James had been.

"Logan! Look!" Carlos dropped to his knees and picked up James' shirt, clutching it to his chest. "His clothes!" His voice dropped, breathless. "He went skinny-dipping and he's been eaten by a crodile. Oh, man! Logan! James has been eaten by a crocodile!"

Logan stood stock still, his heart stopping. He looked around, taking in everything. "Carlos! Carlos, calm down! He hasn't been eaten."

Carlos would not be persuaded. "How do you _know_? Here's his clothes and - no James!"

"Because his shoes are missing. Do you know anyone who'd go skinny-dipping without their shoes?"

Carlos hesitated. "No. Okay. Then where is he?"

Logan cupped his hands around his mouth and shouted "James!" JAMES!"

No answer.

"Logan…"

"Don't say it."

"You don't think he's…running around the jungle naked, do you?"

Logan frowned in distaste. "I didn't want to picture it but thanks for that."

"We'd better tell Kendall."

"Let's hope James is already back there, because it'll be too dark to look for him until morning."

* * *

Kendall couldn't sleep. How could he sleep when James was lost out there somewhere? And James didn't have his back or any supplies or the machete. At last he gave up trying to fall asleep. The tent felt so empty without James there. Kendall climbed out of the tent and found Logan sitting by the fire, hugging his knees to his chest.

"Is Carlos asleep?"

Logan shook his head. He turned to look up at Kendall with stricken eyes. "I didn't get a chance to apologize to him, Kendall. I really want to tell James I'm sorry."

Kendall sat beside his friend. "I know. And you will. We'll find him."

"Come on, be honest. Do you really believe that?"

The blond gazed into the flames and sighed. "I have to. So do you. So does Carlos. Because if we don't, then it definitely won't happen."

"You know, he can be really annoying sometimes, but—"

"You don't have to say it. I think we all feel that way about each other."

Logan nodded.

Kendall stood up and headed back for his tent. "Try to get some sleep."

"Seriously?"

"Well, lying awake worrying wasn't going to make it any easier to find him, is it? We're going to need all the energy we've got. You comin'?"

"In a minute." At Kendall's skeptical look, Logan forced a smile. "Really. One minute."

"We'll find him."

"Is that a promise?"

"Sure," Kendall said with more conviction than he felt. And he hoped he was right.

* * *

Kelly was in the sitting room of the suite she shared with Gustavo. She perched on the edge of the small, tufted sofa, her phone pressed to her ear.

"I see. Thank you for that. No, we'll be here and if not, you can reach us at this number. Yes, _si_. _Gracias_." Kelly finished the call and turned as Gustavo enter the suite. "How did lunch with the promoters go?"

Gustavo shook his head. "Not as bad as I thought. The Lima venue won't be ready for at least a week, maybe longer." He grinned. "They're blaming the plumbers and the plumbers are blaming the electricians. The electricians are alternating between blaming Mother Nature and blaming the building's architect. Who, by the way, has been dead since 1952."

"Well, at least they're not blaming us."

"Why would they blame us?" Gustavo paused. "Kelly…what's that look?"

"What look?"

"That look you get when something's happened. You know you can't lie to me." His eyes narrowed as he studied her. "Kelly…where are the dogs?"

"They're…You should sit down."

Gustavo didn't move. "I'm waiting."

"I just talked to an inspector for the Lima police. Kendall used his mother's credit card at an airstrip outside Lima. It's possible the boys are in the Amazon."

Gustavo collapsed into a chair and rubbed his face with both hands. "Please tell me that's the name of a Lima nightclub."

"Amazon as in 'jungle.'" Kelly started talking faster before Gustavo could say anything more. "The police think the guys were in a stolen plane. All they have to do is find the plane and—"

Gustavo jumped to his feet and roared "HOW DOES THIS STUFF KEEP HAPPENING TO THEM?!"

"I DON'T KNOW!" Kelly shouted back.

"They were going to buy souvenirs," he said lightly. "Just a few souvenirs. That's what they said. Didn't Carlos tell you they were going to buy souvenirs?" He turned to look at Kelly. "IS A PLANE A SOUVENIR?"

"Clearly they had to be with someone. I don't think any of the boys knows how to fly a plane."

"Do you honestly think that would stop them? Have you met them?" Gustavo Rocque was starting to hyperventilate.

"Gustavo, think. You know the boys would be here if they could. They didn't just take off. They care too much about their fans to let them down, and you know that."

Gustavo nodded, trying to get his rapid breathing under control.

Kelly went on. "The police talked to the owner of the plane. He said he had already stowed some camping supplies for a weekend trip he was taking with a couple of friends. Didn't James or Logan say they'd been in Boy Scouts? I'm sure that wherever they are, they're making a camping trip out of it."

"In the AMAZON?"

"I'm trying to be positive here, okay!?" Kelly struggled to control her own emotions. It was bad enough Gustavo was freaking out. They couldn't both lose control. "It's a lot of area, but the forest service is organizing a search for them. I'm sure the boys will be back before you know it."

"I hate those dogs," Gustavo muttered.

Kelly rolled her eyes. "You do not."

"We need to tell Jennifer Knight what's happening."

"And by 'we', you mean me."

Gustavo ignored that comment. "I'll be in my room. I need to figure out what I'm going to tell the tour promoter if the dogs aren't back in time for Rio." And with that, he walked into his room and slammed the door behind him.

Once he was sure Kelly wouldn't try to follow, he sat on the side of the bed. Suddenly he had a headache and his stomach wasn't doing too well either. He didn't want Kelly to know just how worried he really was, but it was if he'd lost a part of his own family. He looked around the room, trying to collect his thoughts when his gaze fell on the band's latest CD on the nightstand. He picked it up and stared at the cover photo. "Where are you? He put it back on the nightstand and looked at it once last time. "Please be all right," he whispered.


End file.
